Foreign intelligence on plane crash not shared with Egypt

Foreign intelligence on the reasons of a Russian airliner’s crash over Sinai peninsula has not been shared with Egypt, Foreign Minister of the country said on Saturday.

“The information we have heard about the cause of the crash has not been shared with Egyptian security agencies in detail,” Xinhua cited Foreign Minister Sameh Shokri as saying.

“We understand the worries of some countries … We expected that the technical information would be provided to us,” Shokri said at a joint press conference.

Shokri also said the Egyptian government has responded in cooperation and coordination amid similar international criteria on plane crash accidents.

As investigation is still underway, Russia on Friday suspended all flights to Egypt as speculation rose over possible terrorist attacks on the Russian plane that crashed over Sinai peninsula on October 31.

The suspension has left some 79,000 Russians currently in Egypt, mainly in the resorts of Hurghada and Sharm al-Sheikh, according to Russia’s state tourism agency Rostourism on Saturday.

Meanwhile, British planes have landed in Cyprus in readiness to start evacuation of some 20,000 British tourists stranded in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, Cypriot authorities said on Friday.